ASTORIA — New Yorkers weary of the big city can get a break this weekend — on the big screen.
The Rural Route Film Festival is coming to Astoria this weekend, screening movies that focus on the world outside the typical urban setting.
"People and cultures outside of the city that are normally overlooked by the mainstream media," said director Alan Webber, who's been running the festival for the last decade.
"The idea from the start was to focus on these overlooked people and places and sort of give them a home," he added. "For these kind of subjects...that tend to sort of get more lost in the cracks."
The festival will kick off Thursday, Aug. 1 at 7 p.m. at the Strand Smokehouse, 25-27 Broadway in Astoria, and will feature BBQ, live music and archival film footage.
Film screenings will take place Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Museum of the Moving Image at 36-01 35th Ave. Live music and food vendors will be set up both Saturday and Sunday in the museum's new outdoor courtyard.
This year's lineup includes "The Mosuo Sisters," a documentary by Marlo Poras about two young women and the changes confronting their home town, a remote village in the Himalayas.
Also planned is a special tribute program to late documentary filmmaker Les Blank, which will take place Friday night and includes the screening of three of his works.
The festival closes out Sunday night with a number of short films that will be screened on the rooftop farm at Brooklyn Grange, 37-18 Northern Blvd., in Long Island City. Neighboring cafe COFFEED will provide beer and other refreshments.
Visit the Rural Route website for a full schedule of events and screenings.
